Adventure Time for D&D 5e – Part 2: Classes

Back in 2014, I ran a 4th edition D&D game set in Adventure Time‘s Land of Ooo. I used a fantastic Adventure Time homebrew mod of D&D 4e, by Bloodghost, to run the game. Last week I wrote about new races (species) for an Adventure Time campaign in 5th edition. This week I’ll be drawing from Unearthered Arcana, D20 Modern, Modern Magic and the 4th edition homebrew along with providing my own ideas to look at which classes fit an Adventure Time campaign and 2 new homebrew options you can use in any D&D game.

Watching Adventure Time isn’t required to play in this setting, but it really helps. Any of this material could be used in your own homebrew setting or to get started on playing a game in this setting.

I’ll be breaking this down into four parts and releasing another chapter each week.

CLASSES

Pendleton Ward, the creator of Adventure Time, often mentions how Dungeons & Dragons is the biggest inspiration for the show.

“Well Dungeons and Dragons is probably the biggest inspiration. When I am working on it, it feels like I am running a campaign of D&D. I am just writing stories I would want to play over a table with my buds.”– from an interview with Pendleton Ward at Geekadelphia

It’s easy to see this inspiration as so many aspects of the show and characters even have roles such as being a wizard, warrior or princess. Yet, the show doesn’t take place in a traditional fantasy setting and the traditional D&D classes don’t all match up perfectly. That being said, I don’t think rewriting all the classes is needed, some simple tweaks will let nearly any option from the Player’s Handbook work in the Land of Ooo.

Divine Classes

The biggest obstacle to playing 5th edition classes in an Adventure Time setting is that divine magic isn’t strongly represented in the show. That being said, there are a number of cosmic level characters to draw from if you wanted to create a pantheon such Cosmic Owl, Death, Party God, Grob Gob Glob Grod, Glob and Prismo.

Clerics: Allowing clerics that take a new Medic Domain could work, but I think reflavoring the class as a “new” class called Medic fits the world better. Another option would be to create a Healer arcane tradition using some of the cleric spell list, especially those found in the Life Domain. If you really want to play a cleric draw your power from placing faith in Glob, Party God or another cosmic character.

Paladins: Finn is a knight who has sworn an oath to protect the Candy Kingdom, but he doesn’t exhibit divine powers he can control. Creating a new Paladin oath could work too, but I would recommend leaving Paladins out of the class list. If you really want to allow paladins, try out fun options. One option could be to have a paladin fight for the right to party, by worshiping Party God and taking an oath to party hard.

Class

Playing this Class in Adventure Time

Barbarian

Fierce warriors of a primitive background who can enter a battle rage

Barbarians in Ooo are buff and enjoy rough-housing

If you have a player looking to play a blue skinned Marauder, just use Half-Orc as a racial template.

The options in the Player’s Handbook and in Sword Coast Adventurer’s Guide will all work, especially Totem Warrior.

Monk

I can’t think of any monk characters in Adventure Time, the closest think I can think of is the Ninjas of the Ice which are only mentioned in a book owned by Ice King and might be a better fit as a rogues

Paladin

NOT AVAILABLE, OR CREATE A NEW OATH SUCH AS ‘Life of the Party’ or ‘Fight for the Right to Party’ and worship Party God

Ranger

Rangers use a mix of magic and combat to protect nature

A player has the flexibility to fit their idea of a ranger into this world by selecting from the existing archetypes

Huntress Wizard is an example of a Ranger

Rogue

A scoundrel who uses stealth and trickery to overcome obstacles and enemies.

Any Rogue archetype will fit in an Adventure Time setting

Thief: There is an entire city of thieves located in Ooo, including the character Penny.

Assassin: Me-Mow is an example of an assassin and a member of the Guild of Assassins

Arcane Trickster: Magic Man is an example of a trickster than uses magic, but he is most likely more of a high level wizard or comic character even.

Scientist

Scientists are the Artificers/Technomancers of Adventure Time

Scientists (Wizards) use their knowledge (see Arcane Traditions – Scientist below) to exploit their knowledge of the laws of nature to create wondrous spell like attacks and useful devices

Princess Bubblegum is an example of a Scientist

Sorcerer

A spellcaster who draws on inherent magic from a gift or bloodline

Being a “wizard” is a pretty general term in Ooo any type of magic user is a great fit for the setting.

Ice King is an example of a Sorcerer who gained his powers from a magic crown.

Warlock

A wielder of magic that is derived from a bargain with an extraplanar entity

Being a “wizard” is a pretty general term in Ooo and any type of magic user is a great fit for the setting

Peppermint Butler seems to be an example of a Warlock

Wizard

A scholarly magic-user capable of manipulating the structures of reality.

Being a “wizard” is a pretty general term in Ooo, but there are example of more scholarly magic users in this setting.

Abracadaniel and Bupo are examples of a Wizard.

Medic Class

Clerics work better as Medics in Adventure Time. These are notes on how to simply reflavor the Cleric class with the Life Domain as a Medic for Adventure Time.

Cantrips, Spells & Spellcasting Focus

Nearly any cleric cantrip or spell can be used as is, but you’ll need to try to reflavor it be more medical than divine – and some are a better fit than others.

The spells should be the effects of using doctor instruments like syringes full of healing fluid and nebulizers for spraying aerosols to distant allies.

Rituals should be similar to a doctor researching a medical problem for an answer.

I would recommend using a medical instrument of some sort as a focus or a lucky charm.

Turn & Destroy Undead

A small change to Turn Undead this…“As an action, you speak a few words to an undead to remind them that they are very sick and should go home and take a nice long rest.”

A small change to Destroy Undead to better fit Adventure Time skeletons and zombies…“When an undead fails its saving throw against your Turn Undead feature, the creature is instantly returned to health (zombie) and goes home to sleep it off or returns to its grave (skeletons), if its challenge rating is at or below a certain threshold…”

Divine Intervention

Rename to Medical Miracle

“Beginning at 10th level, you can call on your faith in medicine to help you pull out a medical miracle when your need is great.”

All references to deity should be replace with faith in your training, etc.

“Your DM chooses the nature of how this miracle will play out.”

Life Domain

A Medic is really just a Cleric without the divinity and should take the Life Domain.

Rename Divine Strike as Anatomical Precision and “At 8th level, you gain the ability to use your expertise in the field of anatomy to direct your weapon strikes at the weak points of your enemies…“

Scientist – Arcane Tradition

Scientists are super brainiacs who spend all day hiding in a lab, until they are dragged out on an adventure. Magic is part of everyday life in the Land of Ooo, but so is science. Scientists don’t cast spells using magic. Scientists use the scientific method to conduct experiments and invent devices to create wondrous spell like effects using science. As as stated in Clarke’s Third Law (“Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic”), the abilities of scientists are quite similar to other wizards, but their source is not magic, but knowledge of the universe.

Scientists are played just like a Wizard, but spell slots are like available brainpower and if you consume them doing science stuff, then you need to rest up your noggin.

This homebrew Scientist Arcane Tradition borrows heavily from the Unearthed Arcana Artificer that is currently available for playtest.

Create Chemical Elixir

Starting at 2nd level, you can conduct experiments to produce useful chemical compounds that work in the same way as potions, but are called Elixirs. You spend 10 minutes with your portable chemistry kit and expend a spell slot to produce an elixir from a formula you know (see list below). Once you have expended a spell slot to create the elixir, you cannot regain that slot until it’s consumed or after 1 week, at which time the elixir loses its potency. You only have enough beakers to store three elixirs at a time, so creating a new, fourth elixir requires you to consume or destroy one of your three already existing elixirs.

The spell slot you expend determines the type of elixir (identical effects as related potion) you can create. See chapter 7 of the Dungeon Master’s Guide for complete rules on potions and information on each potion.

Spell Slot

Elixir Formulas Known (Potions)

1st

Diminution, Growth, or Healing

2nd

Invisibility or Greater Healing

3rd

Speed or Superior Healing

4th

Vitality

Create Simple Device

At 2nd level, you can also tap into your knowledge to create a simple device. You can use your Arcane Recovery ability to develop this device using science instead of regaining your expended spell slots (or brainpower).

You must finish a short rest, then spend 10 minutes to create a single-use device which is able to “cast” one “spell” chosen from those you know. Subtract the spell’s level from the total levels worth of slots you regain using Arcane Recovery. This reduction to your Arcane Recovery applies until you use the simple device and then finish a long rest. Once used, the simple device is useless except for recycling the raw materials for your next device.

Charge-Up Weapons and Armor

Beginning at 6th level, you can charge-up weapons and armor using your knowledge awesome knowledge of alloys and science. You can spend 1 hour (10 minutes for something that has previously been charged-up) tinkering with a mundane weapon, suit of armor, shield, or bundle of twenty pieces of ammunition, and expend a spell slot to power it up. Charged-up items are tricky and needs lots of maintenance, so they only retain their enhancement for 8 hours or until used (in the case of charged-up ammunition). You only have enough rare materials to charge up one item at a time; if you charge up a second one, the first immediately loses its potency. Once you have expended a spell slot to create such an item, you cannot regain that slot until the item is stripped of its enhancement. Charged-Up weapons and armor should be considered as magical as magic weapons and armor for the sake of rules.

The spell slot you expend determines the type of weapon, armor, or shield you can charge up.

Spell Slot

Item Created

2nd

+1 ammunition (20 pieces)

3rd

+1 weapon, +1 shield

4th

+1 armor

5th

+2 weapon, +2 ammunition (20 pieces)

6th

+2 armor

Master’s Degree of Science

Starting at 10th level, you have developed enough raw materials that you can now power-up a second weapon, suit of armor, shield, or bundle of ammunition using your Charge-Up Weapons and Armor ability. You can’t attempt to power-up a third item without stripping and powering down one of your other 2 items first.

You also:

expanded your chemistry set and can create one additional elixir using Create Chemical Elixir

found enough raw materials to create one addition device using Create Simple Device

Doctorate Degree of Science

On reaching 14th level, your mastery of the laws of nature allows you to produce a variety of inventions. You can create a single item chosen from Magic Item Tables A and B in chapter 7 of the Dungeon Master’s Guide. It takes you 1 week to produce such an invention, and you must rest your brain for 1 month before you can be inspired to invent another such item. You must come up with a vague scientific explanation for how you created your invented item and how it works. The item should be considered magical and will have identical effects as the matching magical item for the sake of rules.

Shawn is an author and co-founder of Tribality.com. He first got into tabletop RPGs through ninjas and then by playing a Kender in Dragonlance. Years later, he can be found running games in the Nentir Vale and his own Seas of Vodari campaign setting.